Sony a7R II vs a7S II Made Easy In This Video Comparison

B&H, in association with Zacuto, has put together a handy video comparing the features & image performance of the Sony a7R II and Sony a7S II cameras.

a7R II vs a7s II: The Debate Rages On

The a7R II vs a7S II debate is an interesting one. Despite one being designed primarily for video and the other for photography, it’s not a clear-cut yes or no answer. Adding 4K and full frame/crop features into the mix produce a range of results over the two mirrorless camera bodies.

We posted this detailed article back in November, giving great insight into the comparisons between the two—both in 4K/1080 and Full frame/cropped sensor modes.

The above video condenses the information nicely and agrees with our findings regarding image performance. Here they are in a nutshell:

a7S II better than a7R II in low light (a7R II capped at 25,600 ISO)

a7R II cleaner in low light in cropped mode than in full frame mode

a7S II optimum 4K performance in full frame mode

a7R II optimum 4K performance is in cropped mode

Both cameras more of less on par in optimum 4K modes (a7R II falls behind in 4K full frame mode)

a7R II slightly worse rolling shutter than a7S II

a7R II better with rolling shutter in full frame than in cropped mode

a7R II vs a7S II: The Pros of Each

There’s also a few features that separate the two. Below I’ve listed what can be considered ‘pros’ over the alternative camera body.

sooooo, please clarify me on this, since it was the first time i’ve heard about it. On the 7Sii, if you use cine manual lenses, you have to add manually the focus length of the lens, BUT it only stabilizes in 3 axes ?! Not on 5 ?! (min 5:43). Thanks

Eric Darling
January 31, 2016

Anonymous
January 31, 2016

Both the video and photography review comparisons were the most helpful I have seen to date. It is extremely helpful to understand that the A7RII in the hands of an advanced photographer and videographer can be set up to have almost all the virtues of the A7SII and few weaknesses along with its extra strengths. For me this answered all my concerns and as we heed a camera to do both well we will land on getting the A7RII as long as the firmware fix really corrects the overheating internal 4 K UHD issue